Edgar beers



No. 618,023 Patented Jan. l7, I899. E. 'BEERS.

MACHINE FUR PICKING CURLED HAIR.

(Application filed. Dec. 2, 1897.)

(No Model.)

IN VE N 70H W/TNESSES ATTORNEYS.

1y: norms PEYERS co. Pno'ruuma. WASHNGTQ J NrTnn STATES PATENT rrrcn.

EDGAR BEERS, OF GEORGETOVN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO JOHNGALLAGHER, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

MACHINE FOR PlCKlNG CURLED HAIR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 618,023, dated January17, 1899.

Application filed December 2, 1897. fierial No. 660,501. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDGAR BEERs, of Georgetown, in the county ofFairfield and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and ImprovedMachine for Picking Curled Hair, of which the following is a full,clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to certain improvements in picking-machines, suchas are especially adapted for picking curled hair; and the object is toprovide a machine of this character, of a very simple and comparativelyinexpensive construction, which shall be strong and durable and by meansof which the hair may be rapidly picked from the rope and finished in asheet form, and thus adapted for use in upholstering.

I will describe a machine embodying my invention and then point out thenovel features in the appended claims. 7

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forminga part ofthis specification, in which similar characters of reference inclicatecorresponding parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a vertical section of a machine embodying my invention. Fig.2 is a front end view thereof, and Fig. 3 is afragmentary plan viewtaken at the right-hand end of Fig, 1.

The frame comprises side pieces 1, to one end of which, at the top, atable 2 is attached. Arranged at the forward end of the frame, one abovethe other, are feed-rollers 3 and 4. The shafts of the feed-rollers atone end are provided with intermeshing pinions 5 and 6, and the upperroller 3 has its bearings in blocks 7, adapted to move vertically inguides 8. Springs 9, bearing against the upper sides of the block 7,will serve to hold the upper roller yieldingly toward the lower roller,and the tension may be adjusted by means of screws 10, passing throughthe top of the guides 3 and engaging with the spring.

The rollers 3 and 4 are longitudinally cor rugated, as plainly indicatedin the drawings, and motion is imparted to the rollers by means of aworm 11 on a shaft 12 and meshing with a work-wheel 13 on anoutwardlyextending portion of the shaft of the lower roller 4. Theshaft12 is arranged at an incline and has bearings in brackets 14., ex-

tended from one of the side pieces 1. The lower end of the shaft 12 isprovided with a bevel-gear 15,which meshes with a bevel-gear 16 on acounter-shaft 17, and also meshing with this bevel-gear 16 is abevel-gear 18 on a main shaft, consisting of two sections 19 and 20.

Mounted on the sections 19 and 20 of the main shaft is a driving-pulley21, on one-side of which is a clutch member 22, designed to be engagedby a clutch member 23, mounted to slide on the section 19 of the mainshaft, but to rotate therewith. The opposite side of the pulley hasaclutch-section 24, designed to be engaged with a clutch-section 25,mounted to slide on the section 20 of the main section, but to rotatetherewith. The movable clutch-sections in order to make them rotate withthe shaft-sections may be each provided with a feather to engage in agroove formed in its shaft-section, and they may be moved into and outof engagement with the clutchsections on the pulley by means of levers26 and 27, having pins or lugs extended into annular channels formed inthe movable clutchsections.

Rearward of the feed rollers 3 and 4 and movable across the same in thearc of a circle is a picking-comb comprising teeth 28,extend= ed from abar 29, which bar is connected to arms 30, mounted on ashaft 31, havingbear ings in blocks on the upper sides of the side pieces 1. One end ofthe shaft3l is provided with a crank 32, from which a connecting-rod 33extends to a crank 34 on the crank-shaft 17. Obviously as thecounter-shaft 17 rotates and as the crank 32 is longer than the crank 34a reciprocating motion in the arc of a circle will be imparted to thepicking-comb, and the degree of movement may be regulated by moving oradjusting the connection between the rod 33 along the slot formed in thecrank 32.

Rearward of the feed-rollers 3 4 and the picking-comb just described isa second set of feed-rollers 35 and 36, which are longitudinallycorrugated like the first-named rollers, and the upper one hasadjustable bearing-blocks and a spring-yielding presser 37, as abovedescribed in connection with the rollers 3 and 4. Motion is imparted tothe feed-roller 36 by means of a worm 38 on a vertical shaft 39, to thelower end of which a bevel-gear 40 is attached, the said bevel-gear 40meshing with a bevel-gear 41 on the section of the main shaft. The tworollers and 36 will be geared together in the same manner as thefirst-named rollers. It is intended that the rollers 35 and 36, whichmay be termed the finishing feed-rollers, shall have a faster rotationthan the feed-rollers 3 and 4. Therefore the worm-wheel 42 on the shaftof the roller 36 is somewhat smaller than the worm-wheel 13 on theroller 4.

Rearward of the rollers 35 and 36 is a picking-cornb comprising teeth43, mounted on a bar 44, which is connected to arms 45, mounted on ashaft 46, having hearings in blocks on the upper sides of the sideportions of the frame, and on this shaft 46 is a crank from which a rod47 extends to a connection with a crank 48 on a counter-shaft 49, whichhas a bevel-gear 50, meshing with a bevel-gear 51 on the shaft-section20. The rod 47 may be adjusted on the crank affixed to the shaft 46, sothat a greater or less throw of the comb may be secured. This comb, itwill be understood, operates in a similar manner to the first-namedcomb, but somewhat faster, and for this purpose the bevel-gear 51 ismade somewhat larger than the bevel-gear 18.

Supported in the frame and designed to carry the hair from the rollers 3and 4 to the rollers 35 and 36 is a bed-plate 52. This bedplate 52 iscurved downward between its ends, the object of which is to give asufficient slack to the sheet of hair as it extends between the twopairsof rollers to prevent its being torn or broken as it is fed between therollers 35 and 36, which, as before stated, have an increased speed ofrotation relatively to the feed-rollers 3 and 4. The hair when operatedupon by the teeth 43 is discharged upon a downwardly inclined or curvedtable 53, from which it passes to the floor or to a suitable receptacle.

It is obvious that when starting the machine the shaft-section 20 may bethrown out of engagement with the pulley 21; but when the sheet extendsto and connects with the rollers 35 and 36 the said shaft-section 20must be placed in engagement with the pulley. Then upon finishing thematerial or while it is passing between the rollers 35 36 only theshaft-section 19 may be disconnected or thrown out of engagement withthe pulley 21, thus stopping the rollers 3 and 4.

In operation the ropes of hair are fed along the table 2 and between thefeed-rollers 3 and 4, and as these feed-rollers are rotated areciprocating motion will be imparted to the picking-comb comprising theteeth 28. At each downward stroke of the comb the teeth will engage withthe ends of the rope and draw the hairs forming the same downward, so asto loosen said rope and thoroughly pick the hairs composing the same. Asthe upper roller is capable of a slight vertical movement, it adaptsitself to the slight inequalities of thickness of the ropes passingbetween the two rollers, so as to prevent injury to the hair, and as thecomb moves upward the teeth 28 thereof, being inclined downward, readilywithdraw themselves from the hair, and in this way the hair is evenlyand thoroughly picked and loosened without being torn or injured, sinceeach tooth is permitted to clear itself on the upstroke. 1n passingthrough the second machine, comprising the rollers 35 and 36, the sameoperation takes place and more thoroughly picks and evens the sheetformed during the first operation, thus putting the sheet in the bestpossible form for use by upholsterers.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent-- 1. A machine for picking curled hair and the like,comprising two sets of feed-rollers, one set being rearward of the otherset, a reciprocating comb rearward of each set of rollers, and mechanismcomprising a sectional shaft and clutches whereby both sets offeedrollers may be operated together or either set operated while theother set is at rest, substantially as specified.

2. A machine for picking curled hair and the like, comprising a set offeed-rollers,

means for rotating the same, a picking-comb operating at the rear sideof said rollers, another set of rollers for receiving the material fromthe first-named rollers, means for operating the same at a greater speedthan the first-named rollers, a picking-comb oper ating at the rear sideof the last-named rollers, and means, comprising a sectional shaft andclutch mechanism whereby both sets of rollers may be operated together,or either set operated while the other set is at rest, substantially asspecified.

3. A machine for picking curled hair and the like, comprising a set offeed -rollers, means for rotating the same, a picking-comb operating atthe rear side of said rollers, another set of rollers forreceiving thematerial from the first-named rollers, means for operating the same at agreater speed than the first-named rollers, a picking-comb operating atthe rear side of the last-named rollers, means, comprising a sectionalshaft and clutch mechanism, whereby both sets of rollers may be operatedtogether, or either set operated while the other set is at rest and alongitudinally-curved bed-plate extended be tween the two pairs ofrollers, substantially as specified.

4. A machine for picking curled hair and the like, comprising a frame, apair of feedrollers mounted on the frame, a main drivingshaft comprisingtwo sections, a pulley mounted on said sections, clutches for engagingthe sections with the pulley, a worm-shaft driven from one section ofthe main shaft, a worm on said shaft engaging with the worm-wheel on theshaft of one of the rollers, a set of finishing feed rollers, awormshaft driven dinally-curved bed-plate extended frem one pair ofrollers t0 the other, substantially as 10 specified.

EDGAR BEERS.

XVitnesses:

ALBERT W. CHASE, J HOWARD LANG.

